Tea for Two
by Arnold Summers
Summary: After a hard battle, Robin and Raven have a meaningful conversation over a cup of tea. One-Shot, and it's complete. Please read and review, thanks.


Author's Note: This is my first Teen Titans fan-fic, and it's going to be a one-shot with Robin and Raven having a conversation after a tough battle. Please read and review. Don't own Teen Titans.

Tea for Two

"Aww, man we got out butts kicked!" Beast Boy complained as the five Titans dragged themselves into the Tower after losing a battle with the H.I.V.E. at an abandoned power plant.

"And we still don't know what they wanted to use that plant for." Cyborg added.

"Please, friend, we must remain positive." Starfire pleaded. He shut her a look of disgust.

"It's kind of hard to when you just got schooled!"

"Hey, she was only trying to help!" Beast Boy jumped into Starfire's defense. Cyborg gave him an angry grunt.

"Ok, guys, let's just all chill out." Robin stepped in between the two. "Why don't we all turn in and we'll talk about this tomorrow." They nodded their heads and slunk off towards their rooms. Robin wiped his brow and gave a heavy sigh. He looked over and saw that Raven was making a mug of tea in the kitchen.

"Raven?" She looked at him through her hood.

"What?" She replied in her usual monotone.

"Aren't you going to turn in?"

"I'm going to drink my tea, and then I'm going to meditate and try to forget about what happened today." She walked over to the circular couch carrying the steaming mug and sat down quietly. Robin shrugged his shoulders and walked towards his room.

The first sip of tea was always the hardest; after getting experiencing the first taste of the bitter herbs, the rest of the drink went down smoothly.

She sat quietly sipping her tea and enjoying the silence around her. Her mind started wandering towards the battle. For some reason, they had been undisciplined and lacked focus. She sighed, thinking at the inevitable hours of training and analysis that Robin would make them do tomorrow.

"Hey, Raven?" She turned around and almost reared back in surprise.

"Yes?"

"Do you mind if I get some of your tea?" She raised an eyebrow in surprise; she was the only one who could tolerate the taste.

"Be my guest."

"Thanks." He walked slowly into the kitchen.

"Where are those teabags?" he asked himself as he searched through the cabinets.

"They're in the first cabinet on the left." She called from the living room.

"Thanks." He opened the door and took out the last bag.

"We're going to have to go to the market tomorrow. Is the water still hot?"

"Yes." He poured some water into a mug and dunked the tea bag repeatedly.

"You mind if I sit?" He asked as he walked towards living room.

"Go ahead." He sat to her left on the couch and took a small sip.

She had been surprised when she saw him. He was wearing a white undershirt instead of his red top, and he had taken off his cape and gloves. She noticed that he was pretty well-built for a guy of his size. He wrinkled his face slightly after his initial sip.

"It's an acquired taste." She volunteered quietly.

"I'll say." He continued to sip his drink. "It gets better as you go along." They sat for a while in a comfortable silence before Robin spoke up.

"I used to drink tea a lot when I was younger; Earl Grey, not herbal tea. We had a butler and he would make us tea after a mission, and we would talk about how everything went that night."

"This was when you were with…"

"Yeah. He taught me everything I know." They continued sipping their drinks.

"So is this now an after-battle tea session?"

"You might say that." He replied staring straight ahead.

"Why are you only talking to me? Shouldn't the others be here?"

"The others don't like tea." He quickly added. "And besides, I appreciate your honesty."

"Then you'll appreciate it when I tell you that you should take a shower." He chuckled.

"See? No one else would have told me that to my face." They stared into their mugs.

"So what do you think went wrong today, Raven?" She took a deep breath before responding.

"We were undisciplined and lacked focus. We didn't stick to our battle formations. Basically, they were tougher physically and mentally." He nodded his head quietly.

"That pretty much sums it up. I guess we've all been kind of distracted lately." He took another sip before continuing.

"There were some good things. Beast Boy did save you from being buried by the collapsing steel frames."

"And in doing so, he allowed Mammoth to join Gizmo in dismantling Cyborg."

"He saved your life, Raven."

"At the cost of the overall goal."

"I still think that you were pretty harsh on him."

"Maybe I was. I'm always harsh on him. What's the big deal?" He smiled slightly.

"You know, in grade school, if a guy or girl likes someone, they tease them or throw rocks at them." She shot him a hard glance.

"What are you implying?" She hissed. He smiled wryly.

"Nothing. Just a possible reason for why we were unfocused." She rolled her eyes and sipped her tea.

"Well if you're saying I'm hiding something, you sure don't do a good job at hiding things either." He gave her a funny look.

"What are you talking about?"

"Just because I don't always hang out with you guys doesn't mean I'm oblivious."

"Oh?"

"I'm talking about you and Starfire." He paused in mid-drink. She decided to continue.

"It's pretty obvious that she feels the same way towards you. I could tell" He rubbed the back of his head and gave a sheepish grin.

"I guess you're right. I guess I was afraid of rejection or I didn't want to ruin our friendship."

"Trust me, you won't."

"So when did you first find out?"

"Well, there was the prom thing with Kitten, and then there was the whole issue of her getting married on Tamaran, and then…" He held out his hand, laughing.

"Ok, ok, you don't have to make it sound so obvious." He finished the rest of his tea and stood up.

"Well, Raven, I'm going to turn in. Maybe we'll both be more 'focused' tomorrow." He added with a smile.

"Maybe." She replied dryly. He started walking away towards his room.

"Robin?" He looked back at her. She gave him the smallest hint of a smile.

"I, I enjoyed our conversation." He nodded his head.

"You know, Raven, you don't always have to drink alone."

"Yeah, I know." He turned around and continued walking away. She sighed contentedly and swirled the remaining tea in her mug.

It tastes better when you aren't alone.

Sorry folks, no Robin-Raven romance. Just good conversation between friends. (I'm a Rae-BB and a R-SF person) Hope you liked it.


End file.
